Welcome back to Eater's Journal in which we muse on recent meals. Like any good Eater should, we dine out a lot. We might as well discuss.
We were recently invited (read: not on our dime) to check out Sid Krofft's much-ballyhooed Eleven now that it's finally up and running. After seeing it under construction, it was nice to see the space all dolled up and semi-full. The downstairs bar attracted a mish-mash of cocktailers, mostly Boy's Town trollers. Upstairs, a few drinkers sat at the smaller bar, while the white-clothed tables held small groups and a couple dates. We sat along the glass wall across from the DJ booth/stage, both overlooking the revelry downstairs. Nice dark leather chairs, comfy; same with booths and banquettes. Cool light box fixtures. Love the brick walls, the huge arched windows. Service was very eager, with OK knowledge of the menu; after he relaxed, you could tell he was happy to be there (could be because he would be working the K-Fed party with Lindsay Lohan as DJ soon). Unisex bathrooms, natch.
The menu is more ambitious than expected: Will stuffed rabbit work in this neighborhood? Our dinner: coconut shrimp skewers with too-salty cucumber salad; tuna sashimi over daikon radish and watermelon; perfectly cooked ribeye with a nice salted char; and sweet potato agnolottti, a bit too sweet for our liking, but decadent. At exactly 11pm, the lights dimmed, the DJ pumped out some loud, very disco-y sounds, the upstairs crowd thinned, the downstairs crowd lingered. Still not packed---like East/West across the street---but we hear on Friday and Saturday nights, when a bikinied man works some Cirque du Soleil-like magic over the entire space, it's elbow to elbow.
· Eleven Revealed: Set to Open Dec. 29 [Eater LA]
· Post-Plywood: Eleven Days and Counting for Eleven [Eater LA]
· Breaking: Eleven Opens Tonight [Eater LA]
· Eleven's Debut Weekend [Eater LA]
